NBA -- Dumas In Drug Clinic, So Rodman Trade Stalls

Seattle Times News Services

AUBURN HILLS, Mich. - Talk about a lousy weekend.

On Friday, the Detroit Pistons felt they were just a few signatures away from sending disgruntled Dennis Rodman to the Phoenix Suns for Richard Dumas and Mark West. Now they know that Dumas has voluntarily checked into the NBA's drug clinic in Van Nuys, Calif.

News of Dumas' plight prompted the Pistons to back out of the deal Saturday. The Suns didn't acknowledge that Dumas had checked into the clinic until late Monday.

Dumas, a 6-foot-7 forward, lasted only two years at Oklahoma State before substance abuse caused him to leave for a season in Israel. He then was suspended before the 1991-92 NBA season after failing a random test.

Each referral or check-in to a drug clinic counts as a "strike," and three strikes result in banishment for at least two years.

A clause in the collective bargaining agreement says a player may not come forward on his own until he has played in an NBA regular-season game. Since Dumas' problem two years ago was detected before the team had played, he may not have a strike against him.

NOTES

-- Vin Baker, a 6-foot-11, 243-pound forward from the University of Hartford, and the eighth selection in the NBA draft, signed a 10-year contract with the Milwaukee Bucks that reportedly is worth $1.5 million a season. -- KSTW-TV 11 and Prime Sports Northwest will combine to broadcast 36 SuperSonic games during the 1993-94 season. The Sonics signed a three-year deal with KSTW, which will air 18 games, as well as a Sonic magazine show during the regular season.